Dental implant systems are widely used for replacing damaged or lost natural teeth. In such systems, a fixture part is usually implanted into the bone tissue of the maxilla or mandible of a patient in order to replace the natural tooth root. An abutment structure comprising one or several parts may then be attached to the fixture in order to build up a core for the part of the prosthetic tooth protruding from the bone tissue, through the soft gingival tissue and into the mouth of the patient. On said abutment structure, the prosthesis or crown may finally be seated.
As mentioned above, there exist dental implants where the abutment structure comprises one part and there exist dental implants where the abutment structure comprises two or more parts. When the abutment structure comprises several parts, a first part may be an abutment part that is arranged in relation to the fixture. For example, a portion of said abutment part might be partially inserted into a bore of said fixture. The portion of such an abutment part that is inserted into the fixture may for example comprise a hexagonal or a torx profile. The fixture then preferably comprises a corresponding profile, wherein the abutment part may become rotationally locked in relation to the fixture once the portion of the abutment comprising the profile is inserted into the fixture. The abutment part may also be a sleeve, which is arranged in relation to the fixture without any portion being inserted into the fixture. In either of these arrangements, a second part of the abutment structure may then be used to retain or hold the abutment part and the fixture in engagement. This holding element may for example be a screw. When the implant is in an assembled state, the screw may extend in a bore provided in the abutment part and the fixture along the substantially longitudinal extension of the abutment part and the fixture. In this case, the bore extending in the fixture preferably comprises a threaded portion for engagement with the threading of the screw.
The final prosthesis must be sized and configured so as to naturally fit with the remaining teeth of the patient, both for functionality and aesthetics. In order to size and configure the final prosthesis in accordance with the remaining teeth of the patient, the abutment structure has to be sized accordingly. Furthermore, since the abutment structure should be able to support a tooth-like prosthesis in an intended manner, it is advantageous if the abutment structure has an elongate shape, i.e. have a rather small diameter in relation to its height, such as natural teeth. The wall thickness of the abutment part may then become very small. This may relate especially to a two-part abutment structure, since it then is desirable to arrange a bore for the holding element in the abutment part. With concern taken to the desired height of the abutment structure, this may be difficult and costly to achieve from a production point of view.
Furthermore, the dental implant and the abutment structure of the dental implant may be subject to forces, that they must have the strength to withstand. These forces may occur both during the implantation of the dental implant into the patient's mouth and also during use, such as when a patient with a dental implant chews. If the wall thickness of the abutment structure supporting the prosthesis is to small in relation to the height of the structure, the strength of the abutment structure may become lower than desired and/or required.
Hence, there exists a need for a dental implant comprising an abutment structure with at least two parts that may be dimensioned accordingly for supporting prosthesis in a patient's mouth, without the above-mentioned problems regarding the strength of the abutment structure.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a dental implant an abutment structure that meets this need.